I got into school for nothing - 134
I got into school for nothing (134)
Lesson 28. Flower Viewing of Ruin - 1
Through the grueling labor with Shati, Ban Yuwon realized that trying to get anything for nothing always came with consequences.
No, to be more precise, perhaps it would be better to say that he suffered immensely, toiling to grill each piece perfectly, precisely because there was no such thing as getting something for nothing.
“Hoo... Khahaha, satisfied now?” Shati said, her face pale and drawn.
“If you squeeze any more out of me, all that’ll come out is tears, snot, and...”
“Shati, stop. That’s enough.”
Outside the Academy, within a suitable dungeon.
The summoning magic, conducted after they had entered the dungeon and secured their surroundings due to concerns about unexpected incidents arising from monster summons, proved to be an even greater ordeal than anyone had imagined.
“Yes, there were... but, as always, nothing is easy.”
First and foremost, the biggest issue was that Shati couldn’t perfectly discern what entities her magic would summon.
While no monster powerful enough to simultaneously contend with Shati, Mira, and Ban Yuwon had emerged, creatures with utterly peculiar characteristics appeared every single time, forcing them to brace themselves for each encounter.
In short, it wasn’t the enjoyable experience Ban Yuwon had initially anticipated, where he could simply summon monsters and immediately absorb their concepts.
“It would be a relief if there were... Khahat, it’s been a long time since I could summon so unrestrainedly. It brings back memories of when I used to train, trying to control monsters no matter what...”
“Come here, Shati. I’ll pat your head.”
“Miraaa!”
The substantial consumption of both mana and mental energy by the summoning magic also posed a problem.
While Ban Yuwon possessed methods to replenish mana, the depletion of mental energy had no remedy short of resting in a sanctuary akin to Eden, or at the very least, consuming an elixir jam.
Witnessing the student council president, utterly worn out after paying the full price for her reckless promise to a junior, now leaning against Mira in a tattered state, made it abundantly clear just how severely summoning magic drained one’s mental faculties.
“Senior, have a spoonful of this.”
“Oh? Is this... the one Mira always bragged about... Ooooooh!”
Ultimately, Ban Yuwon fed Shati a spoonful of the elixir jam, ‘Extreme Elixir,’ that he had created in Room 30.
This elixir jam, which boasted its most potent effects upon first consumption and incredible power, yet could cause adverse reactions if consumed too frequently, was, due to its properties, not even a daily staple for the Rebellion members. Instead, it was used for sharing with others occasionally, much like now.
Naturally, all the club members had also taken a spoonful. The video compiled from their reactions had become quite a hit.
“Khahahahahahaha! Complete revival!”
And Shati’s reaction was no different from theirs.
The next moment, as she savored the jam, she sprang to her feet, and within her eyes, without a hint of exaggeration, a dazzling host of stars danced.
“It doesn’t even compare to any potion I’ve ever drunk in my life! You’ve been keeping something this good all to yourself, Mira? I’m truly slighted, *cough*.”
Meanwhile, Mira, who had been consistently receiving elixir jam from Ban Yuwon ever since their contract (feeling somewhat like an in-house welfare service), scoffed, pushing her now-revitalized friend’s forehead away.
“Are you and I the same? If you’re so jealous, then you make a contract with Yuwon too.”
“Kuk, to propose a contract to an Evil One...!”
While the two bickered playfully, Ban Yuwon gathered the noteworthy concepts he had gained from the arduous labor and checked their depth.
In some respects, it was precisely what he had anticipated; in others, it was so disappointing that a sigh escaped his lips.
[Slaughter (殺) 37, Blood (血) 18, Evil (惡) 8, Malice (凶) 6, Corruption (墮落) 5, Death (死) 1.7]
Monsters summoned from the special dimension known as the [Demon World] generally appeared embodying such sinister concepts within their very beings. These were the primary factors that strengthened them, yet when extracted as pure concepts, their depth would diminish, making them incredibly arduous to collect.
Moreover, he had definitely realized this time, while collecting Malice (凶) and Evil (惡) from the monsters of the Demon World, that even if the form of a concept was the same, its detailed sub-concepts could be entirely different upon closer scrutiny.
While depth was, of course, depth, compared to what he had plundered from the Unmoving Controller of Constellations, their radiance and overall power exhibited a somewhat inferior aspect.
‘Still, since the base concept is a Constellation’s Authority, it wouldn’t be bad to use these to supplement it.’
Just as acquiring a concept for the first time was arduous, but growing it wasn’t inherently difficult.
Once the foundational concept was firmly established, adding layers to it, even with more inferior concepts, presented no significant issue.
‘But...’
As Ban Yuwon collected Malice and Evil, which could be considered his primary objective, he noticed something when he looked at the other concepts that had accompanied them.
First, among the most frequently acquired were Slaughter (殺) and Blood (血).
Coincidentally, didn’t the Executioner’s Longsword already possess both of these concepts from the very beginning?
Executioner’s Longsword [Demonic Sword (魔劍) 200, Murder (殺人) 94, Blood Poison (血毒) 75, Severance (斬截) 50, Resonance (共鳴) 35]
These were the concepts currently held by the Executioner’s Longsword.
There was a time when he had imbued concepts such as Melting (融) or Skewer (串), but most of these were absorbed by other concepts forming the demonic sword, ultimately leaving only these prominent ones.
What was important were the concepts of Murder (殺人) and Blood Poison (血毒) among these.
Murder would consistently grow only when the Executioner’s Longsword was used to kill humans (including Tower NPCs), not monsters. As this concept developed, the sword’s power and murderous aura would intensify when facing human opponents.
Blood Poison was, so to speak, the Executioner’s Longsword’s unique concept. It enhanced the sword’s power by drawing Ban Yuwon’s blood and coating the blade with it—a concept he had not encountered anywhere else, despite crossing dimensions and experiencing numerous other powers.
‘To possess concepts typically found only in Demon World monsters from the very beginning... Indeed, the Executioner’s Longsword truly was an exceptional artifact.’
Even though Ban Yuwon consistently added depth using his ability to manipulate concepts, the mere fact that an Earth-made item, originating from a mere lower-ranked dimension, could still be used to this day, proved the extraordinary inherent power of this sword.
‘I could reinforce the Executioner’s Longsword by adding Blood and Slaughter... but let’s consider this issue later. Perhaps there’s an even better combination of concepts. Corruption (墮落)—this is also unique, but since there’s no immediate use for it, I’ll simply place it in the Code Core.’
Besides these, there was another noteworthy concept.
That was the concept of Death, 死.
This was a concept held by only a very few monsters. Even when combined with what he had obtained when the World Giant he encountered during his previous solo exploration committed suicide, its depth was merely 2.7.
As such, it seemed even more special—but also a concept not easily approached.
He wasn’t confident he could immediately imbue it into an object and control it, so how would it be best to handle this...?
Perhaps the most effective way to utilize it would be to unleash it like Language Magic, using it as a means to attack enemies. However, to expend it that way felt terribly wasteful.
‘Ah, shouldn’t I be researching something like this in the Orb’s space?!’
“Yuwon, it’s night now... Do you still have something to do in Ronica? Or...”
Just as Ban Yuwon had a brilliant idea, Mira approached him. She seemed about to ask that question, then, glancing hesitantly at his expression, carefully took his hand.
Then she brought her lips close to his ear and whispered.
“Just the two of us, *ahem*, should we go to a bar?”
The fairy’s two pointed ears, as she spoke, were burning bright red.
When she was with Rucell, they would incite each other and approach him quite boldly; yet, at times like this, she was nothing short of an innocent girl.
However, the fact that Ban Yuwon wasn’t the only one present proved to be her misstep.
“Wow, look at her naturally excluding just me. They say friendship is useless in front of a man, but I never thought even our Mira would be like this!”
“Shati, you...”
“No, let’s head back today.”
It would be a lie to say her suggestion wasn’t tempting.
However, drinking and wandering around on a weekday felt a bit disinclined. He was also mindful of Light, his roommate.
More than anything, since there was a special activity this week, he wanted to keep his mind firmly focused.
“Instead, let’s drink on a holiday, next time.”
“...Promise.”
“Alright. Ah, Senior Shati, could you help again next time?”
“Huh? Me? Anytime, if my schedule allows! Next time, just the two of us, without Mira—just kidding, an Evil One joke! Khahahahat!”
Ban Yuwon quietly pondered as he watched Student Council President Shati, who tirelessly teased Mira and chuckled heartily.
She had claimed she wasn’t proficient in summoning magic, but based on his observations while with her all day... well.
A thought crossed his mind: perhaps he could assist in her mastery of the ability while simultaneously collecting concepts for himself. However, since he wasn’t certain, he couldn’t raise her expectations, so he decided to consider it alone for the time being.
* * *
Team-based special activities were scheduled for this week.
Even with all the adjunct professors combined, there weren’t enough personnel to assign one to each first-year team.
Therefore, most of the time, several teams were grouped together with a single escort, enabling them to complete quests within the same dimension.
Naturally, Rebellion had no such arrangement; Yumina was designated as their escort.
“Alright, the place we’re heading to this time is a planet called ‘Ur-Aha,’ located in the F-138 Dimension.”
After school on Thursday, gathered in the doorless classroom.
The Rebellion members were having a preparatory study session about the dimension they would be departing to tomorrow.
“I’ve explained about the Dimension Grade classification, right? The Dimension Grade is simply the classification of the many dimensions connected to the Union Net via the Tower of Babel, arranged in order of mana density. The ten dimensions ruled by the Ten Great Families are classified as S-grade, and below that, they descend in ABC order.”
So, Lusein Rown-Palomer Aquinas Ortima and all other members of the Special Class were S-grade, huh? He scoffed, finding it utterly ridiculous.
However, it was an undeniable fact that the average mana reserves of a dimension’s inhabitants varied according to that dimension’s mana density.
“The F-138 Dimension, then, would be the 138th dimension with the lowest mana density, even within the F-grade, which is the seventh from the top, wouldn’t it? In truth, once you reach F-grade, the numbers are merely for convenience; there isn’t much difference between them.”
“The very method of classifying dimensions reveals how obsessed people are with mana.”
To put it more simply, the F-138 Dimension was an absurdly insignificant lower-ranked dimension.
The reason their special activity was taking place in the F-138 Dimension wasn’t specifically to discriminate against the Special Admissions for Lower-Rank Dimensions students. Rather, it was said that the first special activity for all first-year students originally took place in such an easy location.
“There won’t be any difficulties. The mission type is simply a subjugation. It’s not even a monster wave; it’s a simple task of merely eliminating a large group of monsters that have appeared en masse in a country within Ur-Aha. Coincidentally, it’s spring in that country, and the flowers are in full bloom, so think of it as going for a flower viewing.”
“But I remember hearing similar words during the previous all-school special activity, only to encounter those dimension pirates.”
“If such a thing happens again this time, then I will personally strangle the Principal.”
At Yumina, who was smiling brightly while casually uttering such terrifying words, the members were utterly silent, unable to make a single peep.
Oh, and incidentally, according to this Dimension Grade standard, Ban Yuwon’s home, Earth, had no mana at all and was ‘ungraded,’ meaning it wasn’t even measured for a grade.
“What about you guys?”
Ban Yuwon, suddenly curious about the dimensions of the other Rebellion members—who, besides himself, also hailed from lower-ranked dimensions—turned to his companions and asked.
“I do not know. I have no interest in such external classifications.”
“I am... from the D-13 Dimension. In this dimension, besides our ‘star’ (planet), there are quite a few other planets that have achieved mana civilization, so we even organized a resistance alliance to counter alien invasions together. ...Though sometimes conflicts arise within it.”
Unlike Dokgo Yeon, who revealed even disgust and outright rejected the Dimension Grade, As Light smiled wryly and explained honestly.
Indeed, As Light had always possessed abundant pan-dimensional knowledge, so it was only natural for him to know the grade of his own dimension.
“Now that I think about it, it’s not as if each dimension only contains a single star, or planet. The scope is starting to feel immense.”
Wasn’t Earth originally just a planet in the solar system, nestled in the Milky Way, merely a corner of the infinitely vast universe?
Thinking that other dimensions where students resided similarly had vast universes sprawling within them made his mind feel utterly overwhelmed.
“No, Ban Yuwon. The universe is one.”
Seeing Ban Yuwon’s eyes spinning, Yumina interjected.
“Oh, really?”
“Yes. While no one can perfectly grasp the entirety of space, the Principal concluded that the universe is one massive expanse, and all dimensions are contained within it. You’ll also learn about this in a general education course in the second semester, but... shall we have a quick preview now?”
Yumina extended her hand into the air and created a sphere with visualized mana.
“Let’s call this the universe. Perhaps at first, the universe was entirely one. But at some point, the universe began to split. ‘Dimension Walls’—boundary lines—appeared, transforming it so that it could not be traversed by the concept of physical distance.”
As Yumina waved her hand this way and that, cracks appeared all over the sphere, and it instantly divided into dozens, then hundreds of pieces.
Outwardly, it was still a single sphere, but simultaneously, it was an aggregate of hundreds of fragments.
Ban Yuwon watched it and asked a question.
“Are you saying that each of those fragments, divided by the Dimension Walls, became a different dimension?”
“Precisely. To add one more thing, Dimension Walls appear at the boundary where mana density changes. Because of that, the distinction between higher-ranked dimensions and lower-ranked dimensions naturally arose.”
Just as hot and cold water, due to their differing densities, do not mix, dimensions with high mana density and those with low mana density also remained separate and unmixed.
However, the difference from water was that while hot and cold water, if left together, would eventually mix completely into lukewarm water—two dimensions with different mana densities, due to the existence of Dimension Walls, would never mix.
“What was once one, divided into many, and made so that they could never mix again...”
—But why?
Ban Yuwon received a very artificial, yet simultaneously very familiar feeling from the existence of those Dimension Walls.
Yumina, unaware of his thoughts, continued speaking.
“Of course, even with Dimension Walls, the movement of mana cannot be perfectly stopped. That’s also why mana can appear in dimensions where it originally didn’t exist. Dimensional travel technology also came into being after extensive research into methods of crossing the Dimension Walls.”
“Most of them merely copied the technology possessed by the Tower of Babel,” Yumina added.
“It’s a simple story when you hear it, isn’t it? There’s no need to feel that other dimensions are vaguely far away. Ultimately, they are just neighbors separated by a somewhat difficult-to-cross wall.”
“When you put it that way, it really doesn’t seem like much.”
“Exactly. Especially for all of you who are climbing the Tower of Babel—the birthplace of the Authority that transcends all Dimension Walls.”
Yumina’s eyes sparkled softly.
“It’s a distinction of no meaning whatsoever. Because you have already transcended the walls. The reason students from higher-ranked dimensions dislike you is simply because they believe you’ve taken everything they enjoyed, which they considered their exclusive privilege.”
And yet, no one had given it to them, nor was it granted only to them——.
Truly foolish and regrettable, isn’t it?
As Yumina spoke thus, and for a moment displayed an arrogant smile, Ban Yuwon suddenly became curious about something.
“Professor Yumina, might I ask which dimension you were born in?”
“Hmm, that’s—”
Perhaps she had anticipated such a question?
Yumina blinked, smiling playfully.
“I’ll tell you when we’re alone.”
Ban Yuwon felt as if he had already heard the answer.
As a bonus, the mood of the Rebellion members who had also heard those words significantly soured.
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